2015 Deck of the Year Contest?

[sinjin7]

Now that we're almost into December, shouldn't it be time to be ramping up for the Deck of the Year Contest? I've got a special brick laid aside to be donated as a prize this year. And didn't we discuss having a Deck of the Year Hall of Fame where we can see all the winners from past years?

*Mods, feel free to move this post to the appropriate forum if it doesn't belong here, thanks.

[badpete69]

We have been discussing this very topic this past week... Stay tuned

[volantangel]

Haha yes indeed, don't worry we are always talking behind your backs ! Anyways we are planning another small event before this

[Mike Ratledge]

Now that we're almost into December, shouldn't it be time to be ramping up for the Deck of the Year Contest? I've got a special brick laid aside to be donated as a prize this year. And didn't we discuss having a Deck of the Year Hall of Fame where we can see all the winners from past years?

*Mods, feel free to move this post to the appropriate forum if it doesn't belong here, thanks.

John, we'll get there soon. I am already collecting prizes from artists, but we haven't formalized everything yet so I have not asked users for prizes.

Won't be long...

[Thirdway Industries]

[sinjin7]

So still waiting for the 2015 Deck of the Year contest. Any updates on this?

[Bikefanatic]

More of us been in at least one contest so we know what's expected. I can easily browse at my shelf displays and find the decks for all the categories.

[Mike Ratledge]

So still waiting for the 2015 Deck of the Year contest. Any updates on this?

I've been mostly out of the loop until a few days ago, but (I hope) Kai is working on it.

[flashcards]

After a full year of collecting, I am much better prepared that I was last year. "Let's get it on!"

[Gamblers Warehouse]

Guys we are ready to sponsor as well. We only have 1 request to please wait till next month as we are going to ship out Alloy decks next week. And it surely is a strong contender for the deck of the year 2015.

[sms69x]

Guys we are ready to sponsor as well. We only have 1 request to please wait till next month as we are going to ship out Alloy decks next week. And it surely is a strong contender for the deck of the year 2015.

Hardly it will enter for the 2015 contest, only decks delivered in 2015 should count.

[NoirArts]

Hi guys. We are new here and can't find rules of contest, can anyone explain?.. Anyway we'll be glad to participate if possible.

[Paul Middleton]

Happy to provide some LUXX for this.

[jerichoholic]

I tend to agree, should only be for decks delivered or released in 2015, not funded in 2015. It will do well in the 2016 contest. My vote for 2015 is Luxx Palme!

[Mike Ratledge]

You should be able to find the UC 2014 Deck of the Year contest and we modified the rules a little last year - mostly making it so you picked the prize you wanted left in the prize pool in the order of finish, so nobody ended up with a prize they already had, unless. Of. Course they wanted another one.

The way it used to be where the 1st, 2nd, 3rd etc prizes were preassigned, it ended up that way occasionally. Or Lotrek might have ended up winning his own prize contributions for example.

We did decide after the contest last yearr (in the moderators forum) that we would call it "Decks of the Year", simply because it makes more sense. There were always 12-15 categories, I think 17 or 18 last year - prizes all of relatively equal value last year.

I have received a couple of prizes from artists and Dan and Dave already, for example (they sent a brick with a Gold Special Reserve Smoke & Mirrors, red & blue Voltige decks, Antlers, etc). A couple of deck artists are going to send prizes out themselves, like Chris Chelko. I see a few here, assume Kai has some and as I noted I have a few they sent to me things will get underway here shortly!

[nECr0MaNCeD]

Has it been a year already? Man time flies when you're old!

Anyway, I will be donating a prize again this year. I just have to go through what I have and see what is appropriate. I am thinking a mixed brick of goodies might be nice. I will PM Kai with the details once I get them sorted out.

[Cbkimble]

I'm going to donate some prizes as well. I'll see what next week, after I get home.

[Mike Ratledge]

I'm going to donate some prizes as well. I'll see what next week, after I get home.

Thanks, guys! Every prize makes it stronger. I remember we had between 15-20 prizes last year, many worth about $200 and prize selection by winners went pretty smoothly .

We are running a couple of weeks behind last year, but I dropped the ball with all my relatives passing over the holidays. It's hell getting older!

Just an aside, and I have not even told Karin - the extra cards for Nouveau & Bourgogne Gran Riserva decks arrived at the post here today. Unfortunately Saturday open time is 9-10AM, so by the time I knew that the package was here, they were already closed. I will pick it up Monday, when I ship a couple outbound Carat Card Case™ small orders.

Speaking of Carats, we're going to be getting v2 cases in 1×, 2×, 3× & 4× decks sizes. These new ones have rounded / beveled edges and "bumpers" on the bottom to protect them and what they are sitting on from scratches, also. The prices for singles will go up a buck or two, but I think they are worth it. We have around 150 left in stock, so I will both discount the original ones and perhaps give one OG case per half dozen ordered? The 10% discount I started before Christmas will remain in affect until they are sold out or the new stock arrives mid- to late February, and I will have pricing for the 2, 3 & 4 deck displays in a week or two. 3× units are already available from Giovanni in his Omnia: The Golden Age project on Kickstarter, and the 3× & 4× displays will be limited availability, perhaps even special order only? I suppose it depends on demand. I will have to work out domestic, Canada & overseas shipping for all four sizes and multiples since the postal service decided to hammer foreign delivery charges and discontinued the discount for printing and affixing your own postage (their "Click & Ship" system online). It's not much, maybe 40¢ up to $1.25 for domestic Flat Rate shipping, but I pass along all discounts to members.

Here's a couple of pix of my prototype Carats - The single (1×) and dual (2×) units:

I suppose without having them in your hands, you really can't tell the difference, eh? They are nicer, and they somehow feel a bit more substantial, probably just because they feel better made in your hands.

If you have a need for 6× or other sizes for a KS project or whatever, let me or Sherman Tsao ("shermjack" here) know. We could do a brick box, for example - but we would need to get at least 50 units, better for us all if it's a minimum of 100 pieces, because the price has to absorb the tooling and design costs per unit. I could see Alex Chin doing a 6× for his mural of six decks of his latest project, and maybe custom brick boxes for storage / display use. The single and double deck ones will always be in stock, but 3× & 4× will be limited and if you need 50+ for a KS campaign, we could (and would) need a couple of months to get them ready for you. There are a couple more little goodies involved with the v2 editions, like flat single & double card displays with inserts for coins, chips and buttons, stamps, sports cards (square corners) and the like "Carat Card Cases™"] shows off the prototypes of 2×,3× and 4× Carat Card Cases™, and they continue to be available from UC, Paul's at Jetsetter Cards & JP's in Britain as well as from Kai in Singapore ("volantangel" here), but members get a dollar off here over anywhere else (except Kai, and he primarily handles small orders overseas, especially now that USPS.com has tightened the screws on overseas Flat Rate box shipping about two weeks ago.

[NoirArts]

Ok, we'll be glad to participate and donate custom brick of our decks. Also we could deliver them to winners by ourselves.

[Becky C]

Have I missed the start of voting?

[Mike Ratledge]

Have I missed the start of voting?

No, we're running a bit late. Kai?